The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1887-02-11
mile high, so as to completely obstruos the

mile high, so as to completely obstruct the
vision.
If professed Christians go to such places
during the week no one will ever perse-
cute them for their religion, for they have
none, and they are the joke of hell But
let them live a consecrated and Christian
life, and they will soon run gainst sneering
opposition. For a compromise Christian
character, an easy time now, but for con-
secrated behavior, grimace and caricature.
For the body, thanks to the God Of free
America, there are now no swords or tery
stakes, but for the souls of thousands of
the good, in a hguratve sense, rack and
gibbet and Torquemada. The symbol of
the domestic and social and private and
pubic suffering of a greG$ multitude OF
Gods dear children, pillars of smoke
at as we look over the story of those
Nh IN .1i -"ss have suffered for the truth,
while we leave We Se''nce 20 Uhe hord' lsS
US band together in one solemn vow, one %
tremendous oath, after having - I'0li'eu 'n9
host of the mart yrs, that for each o..
those glorious men and women who dieo
for the truth, an immortal soul shall live,
live with God aud live forever.
But. as already hin ted in the first SEN
tenes of this sermon, nothing can be moro
beautiful than the figures of smoke on
clear sky. You can see what you will in
the contour of this volatile vapOr, now
men, now hammered procession, now
winged eouriers now a black angel Of
wrath under a spear of the sunsh ne
turned TO an angel of i ght, and now from
horizon to Horizon the air is a picture gal
larv filed with master pieces OF which
God is the artist, morning Ouds OF smoke
Ebru in the sunrise, and evening clouds OF
smG't6 laid in the bu5nished sepulchers OF
the sunset.
The beauty of the tran Sagure6 smoke is
o divine symbol OF the beauty OF the church.
The fairest of all the fair IS she. &o p"I
call those prosecutors of whom / spoke thS
church. They are the parasites of the
church, not the church itsef Her mission
is to cover the earth with sup arnatural
gIalness} to op II all the prison doors; to
balsam ali the wounds; to moss all the
graves; TO burn up the night in the fire
place OF a great morning; to change iron
haitdeuffs into diamond wristlets; to turn
the Whole race around, and, whereas 1t
faced DEATH cOH1man1in it, Right about
face for Heaven According to the num-
Der of spires of the churches in all our
ci les, towns and neighborhoods are the
good homes, tIe well ny pros critics and
the pure morals and the happy souls.
Meet me at any depot the world over,
and t9itH my eyes closed take me by the
hand, and lead me- 80 that my feet will not
stumble, and without ny once tSoking
down. OF lOORln8 ~ INC 1CFSls LdA~ AAA@ w
some high roof or tower, and let me sec
the tops Of the churches, and l will tell
YOU the proportion of suici les, of arsons,
Of murders. of tbefts. According as the
churches are numerous are the crimes
few; according as the churches are few
the rmes are numerous.
The most beautiful organization tho
worIl ever saw or ever Will see is the
rnuch-maligued church, the friend of all
good; the foe OF hu evil; fair as the moon
and clear as the sun" Beautiful in her
Author: beautiful in her mission; the
heroine Of the centuries; the BRIDE OF
Christ; the gtesu of the nations. There
are hundreds of kndiy iSsttutions, some
caring for inebriates; some for She Grip
ped; some for the imbecile; some for the
mIsled: some for the ind; but the church
IS the mother of all these kindly inst tu-
tons. There are asyiums-AmericaRo or En-
Elish. OF Scotch, or IRISH, or French, or
! German, or iSaliau-but the church spreads
her mantle over all these and will yet
spread it over all nations. Her gates are
be e4utiful; her songs are beautiIul$ her
prayers are beautifuls her convocat.s n5
are beautiful; her work IS beautiful. All
Kings an warriors will yet bow down at
her affairs; all chains of serfd1m be shat
tere against b n doorstep; ali nations viii
yet follow her leading. How amiaOle are
Thy tabsrlacle5l II w sacred Thy altarsl
How glorious Thy au'iitorium5t So gra 20
full, so aspiring. 50 granl and rolling on
AMI rolling on we cry 0ut Al REGARD to ner;
"Who is tIis that cometh out Of tue wilder
ness Ike pillars of smokeP'
Men may desecrate it. az Cromwell did
when he stabbed his cavalry horses in st.
Pauis Cathedral; or break off the Ifiags
Of Christ as did the iconoclasts in York
minister; or hurl against a august literary
antipathies, as dill Gibbon; or plot its over
whose pride and hate and debauohery are
Fepreved by the ten commandments which
1t thunGeFs, afid the sermon on the mount
which it breatHes But it will stand as
long as the earth Stands tho SAND
unique and wonder-worklng and be-
attic and miraculous thing for Which
God decreed it.
You lying and hvpocritical world shut
up those slanders about the church of
Christ, an institution which, tar from be-
ing what 1t ought to be, AMI never pre-
tending to be perfect, is five hundred
tiutss better than any other institution
that the world ever saw or dreamed Of.
The highest honor 1 have ever had, and
The Highest honor / shall ever receive and
the highest honor 1 ever want is TO have
my name on her records as a member. At
her affairs l repented. At her sacraments
/ believed. In her service let me die.
From her doors let me be buried. o,
church of God Thou home of the righteousl
Thou harbOr from tempesti Thou refuge
for the weary Thou lighthouse Of many
nltionsi Thou type of Heaveni / coull
kiss thy very dust with ecstasy Of affec-
ton.
''For her my tears shall fail,
For her my prayers ascend,
TO her my tolls and cares be given
Till tolls and cares shall end
"Perfumed smoke says Solomon, in
the words following my text. Not like the
fumes coughed up from the throat Of a
steam pipe, or poisoned with the gases Of
chemical factories, or floating in black
Wrath from the conf lgrations of home
Eteads, or sulphurous from blazing batter
les; but sweet burning grove Of CHINA
mon, or Jungle IF sassafras, or the o1or5 Of
n temple censer "Who is this that cometb
out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke,
perfumed with myrrh ami frank ncensel"
Hear it. men and women everywhere, that
the advance of the genuine church Of
Christ means peace for all nations.
Victor Hugo, in his book entitled 'Nine-
ty Three" says: - Nothing calmer than
smoke, but nothing more startling. There
are peaceful smokes, and there are evil
ones. The thickness and color Of a line
of smoke make the whole difference be-
tween war and peace, between fraternity
and hatred. The whole happiness Of man
or his complete misery is sometimes eX-
pressed in this thin Vapor which the wind
scatters at will" The great Frenchm IN
was right; but l go further ami say that
"a the Kingdom of God advances ike pill
lars of smoke, the black volumes belching
from batteries Of war and pouring out from
port-holes Of sh. .ps viii vanish from the
SKY.
A distinguished gentleman Of the lats
war told me recently that Abrah IN Lin
coin proposed to avoid our civil conf ct by
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